Just a Little Crush
by starshipranger21
Summary: "Brian...has...a crush on you!" When Lauren told her this, Lavender's world turned upside down. Brian likes her. Brian HOLDEN. Lavender doesn't want this to happen. She doesn't want to be more than friends. Or does she? Rated T for language.
1. Power Outage

Power Outage

It was another rainy day in Chicago. All of us StarKids had gathered in the living room of Julia and Jaime's apartment to watch the final Harry Potter movie. Nick and Matt Lang sat in identical armchairs on opposite ends of the couch. On the couch sat Joe (Walker), Jaime, Lauren, Julia, Dylan, and Brian (Holden), squeezed together as tightly as possible. I sat on the floor, my back resting against Brian's legs. To my right was Meredith, leaning against Dylan. On my left was Joey, who had made himself a "seat" out of pillows.  
"Pass the popcorn, Lav," came Julia's voice. "Lav" was short for Lavender, the name my flower-obsessed mother had found "just perfect" for me.  
As I reached for the popcorn on my left, Joey grabbed it hugging it to his chest, a teasing glint in his eye. I grabbed one of his pillows from his seat and smacked him with it, causing him to drop the popcorn. I grabbed it and passed it on to Julia.  
"No fair!" Joey pouted.  
I stuck my tongue out at him. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed Bran watching us, his expression unreadable. I chose to ignore it, and returned my attention to the movie.

Forty minutes later, I was curled up in a ball, rocking back and forth, tears streaming down my face as I watched Nagini attack Snape.  
"Geez, Lav, it's just a movie!" Joe said.  
"You think this is bad? Wait until the pensieve scene," Meredith replied. I had first gone to see the movie with her, Lauren, Jaime, and Julia, and we almost got kicked out of the theater because of me.  
The pensieve scene came.  
"Lavender, for the love of God! Calm down!" Nick cried.  
"B-but he loved her a-and then sh-she dated James h-his en-en-enemy!"  
"For there will always be guys, like Potter!" Brian began.  
"To realize tears in you eyes because he got her!" Joe continued.  
"She'll never ever know how much you'd have-" Dylan was caught of by me giving all three of them the look my friends labeled the "scare-your-ass-off-eye-of-death." They fell silent.  
"After all this time?" said the on-screen Dumbledore.  
"Always," replied Snape.  
And with a howl of wind from outside, the lights went out. Julia swore. Joey immediately started shrieking like a little girl, resulting in us all having to scream "SHUT UP, RICHTER!" Julia went to collect flashlights.  
"Sorry, everybody, but their aren't enough for everyone," Julia said when she returned, "So..." she did a quick head count "Okay, find a partner and there'll have to be one group of three."  
Lauren and I paired up. We figured it would be easier for us since we were both the same height. Meredith joined us.  
The rest of the pairs were Jaime and Julia, Brian and Joey, Matt and Dylan, and Joe and Nick.  
"Since when does Holden get upset that he's not with you?" Lauren asked, the flashlight illuminating a mischievous look in her eyes.  
"What?"  
"Never mind. I'll tell you later. Back at the apartment."  
Lauren, Meredith and I shared an apartment like Julia and Jaime. Same with the Langs. The four other boys were all together in an apartment slightly larger than ours.  
"Can someone text Denise and tell her not to come over?" Julia asked. "She was going to come, but considering the circumstances..."  
"I'll text her," I volunteered. I took our groups flashlight and made my way to the front door where my bag was. As I was digging through my bag, someone tapped me on the shoulder. I let out a little shriek and spun around to find Brian grinning at me.  
"Damn it, Holden! What was that for?"  
He laughed "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. I just...uh..." he stopped smiling and looked down at the floor.  
"Just what?"  
"I just...wanted to see if you needed any help."  
"Well, I don't." _Crap, now he looks hurt. _"Sorry, I mean...I'm okay. Thanks."  
He gave me a feeble smile. "Yeah, okay." He went back into the living room.  
When he left I groaned and sat back against the wall. I pulled on my long wavy brown pony tale, something I alway did when I was nervous or stressed. Lately, Brian had been acting really weird around me. I missed the old Brian who was funny and always knew what to say. I pulled out my phone and typed in the message to Denise.  
_power's out :(. doubt u want 2 come.  
_Denise's reply was immediate: _2 bad. im coming.  
ok. ur choice.  
c ya.  
c ya.  
_I turned off my phone and walked back to the living room.

A few hours later, Meredith, Lauren and I were back in our apartment. I was sitting in the top of our bunk bed-Lauren was on the bottom, Meredith had a bed to herself-and I was flipping through a magazine. Suddenly, Lauren popped up from the bottom bunk.  
"Sooo..." she began, grinning from ear to ear. "I told you I'd tell you something when we got back here."  
"Sure, Lauren," I said, not looking up from my magazine. "Whatever."  
Lauren grabbed the magazine and threw it on the ground.  
"Hey!" I protested.  
She sighed. "Lavender, I'm trying to tell you something important. Will you pleeeeeeeeaaaaassssse listen?"  
I shrugged. "Sure."  
She grinned. Across the room, I saw Meredith bouncing with excitement.  
"Okay," Lauren began. "So here it goes: Brian...has..._a crush on you!"_  
I froze. "Our Brian?"  
Lauren nodded vigorously.  
"Holden?"  
More nodding.  
I thought about it for a while.  
"How would you guys know?"  
Meredith rolled her eyes. "God, Lav, you are _so _oblivious. I mean, do you see the way he looks at you?"  
"I don't really pay much attention to 'how people look at me.'"  
"He looks at you all dreamy-like and...you know!"  
"No, I don't know."  
"Whatever."  
"How about when he blushes when you laugh at his jokes?" Lauren suggested.  
"He does not!" I cried.  
"He _so_ does!" Meredith argued.  
"Ugh!" I buried my face in my pillow. "Just stop!"  
Lauren laughed. "Sorry, Lav, but it's the truth; you're just going to have to believe it."  
"I'll believe it when he tells me it's true."  
Meredith laughed. "I hope he does."  
Thankfully, Lauren and Meredith decided to drop the subject, and I got my magazine back.  
A few minutes later, my phone buzzed.  
It was a text from Joe.  
_hey. do u and the other girls want 2 go out 2 dinner with the rest of us on saturday?  
_I delivered the message to the other girls, and the all thought it sounded like fun.  
I texted Joe back.  
_we'll be there meet at ur apartment.  
_I put the phone away and tried to get the thought of Brian having a crush on me out of my head.


	2. Just a Little Crush

**A/N: I hope you guys like the story so far! Please do not submit harsh reviews. That would make me sad :'(. Of course, all the events that take place in this are fictional. All relationships are fictional. Lavender is fictional.  
Please review!  
~starshipranger21  
**

"Just a Little Crush"

"Meredith! Hurry Up!" I called to my friend who was taking an _extremely _long time to get ready. I turned to Lauren. "What's taking her so long?"  
Lauren shrugged. "I don't know. It's just dinner."  
"Mere, you know the restaurant isn't even fancy, or anything!" I called again.  
Finally, Meredith appeared.  
"Geez, Mere, what took you so long?"  
"Makeup," she replied.  
I rolled my eyes. "Well we're going to be late! Come on!"  
We left our apartment and drove off in Meredith's car. Lauren spun around from the passenger's seat, her eyes sparkling.  
"I can't wait to see how Brian looks at you," she said.  
I moaned and put my head in my hands. "I thought we were done talking about Brian!"  
"We were...until now."  
"Lauren, it's really getting annoying. It's not like I ever tease you about Joe!"  
Meredith snickered.  
Lauren turned red as a firetruck. "How'd you know?"  
"Well it's hard not to notice, what with you two making goo-goo eyes at each other."  
And that ended the conversation.

When we arrived at the boys' apartment, Brian was the one to answer the door.  
"Hey," he said. "Come on in."  
We stepped inside. Lauren made a beeline for Joe, and Meredith wandered over to where Denise, Jaime and Julia were all talking, leaving me with Brian.  
"You look nice," Brian commented. That was it. A simple, friendly compliment. Nothing more.  
"Thanks," I said. I never really put much work into my outfit. Usually I just grab whatever I see first. Today, I had thrown on an off-the-shoulder top with a red and white striped tank top underneath with white capris.  
Brian and I chatted for a while. _Nothing's going on with him, _I told myself. _He's just your friend. _  
And then I heard them talking.  
It happened when I had gone to get my bag before we left. Brian, Dylan, Joey and Joe didn't see me coming-they were all huddled up together.  
"So when are you going to tell Lavender you _love her?" _Joe teased Brian.  
Joe teased _Brian?  
_"Yeah. You've been stuck in the friend zone for years. You gotta..._kick it up a notch," _Dylan agreed.  
"Shut up! It's just a little crush!" Brian argued.  
Just a little crush. I couldn't take it. I grabbed my bag and ran back to the living room, not wanting to here another word.

Dinner was a disaster. For me, at least.  
I sat next to Jaime and...Brian.  
I spent the whole time trying to find ways that showed Brian _didn't _like me...in that way.  
_Maybe they weren't talking about Brian, _I thought. _Joe and Dylan might've been teasing someone else...and Brian would've been defending them! Yeah! Oh, wait, that means Joey likes me...shit.  
_"Lav? You okay?" Jaime asked, interrupting m thoughts.  
"What? Oh, yeah, I'm fine."  
"You haven't eaten anything," she said, gesturing to my plate of spaghetti.  
"I'm not hungry." Which wasn't a lie. How could I eat what with overhearing that?  
Jaime shrugged, a look of concern on her face. "Okay...your choice."  
I had just gone back to my worries when Joey poked me with a crayon.  
"Ow! Richter!"  
He slid his kid's menu-knowing Joey, having a kid's menu was perfectly normal-over to me.  
"I wanna play tic-tac-toe! Now!" he shrieked. Some people in the restaurant turned to stare.  
"All right. But only so when don't get kicked out of the restaurant."  
Several tic-tac-toe games later, I was feeling a lot better. We were all talking and laughing, and Jaime and I were making fun of Lauren and Joe, who had spent half the time flirting with each other. That or staring into each other's eyes. It didn't feel like a disaster, but it turned into one.  
As Meredith, Lauren and I were getting ready to leave, Brian leaned over and whispered something to me.  
"Can I talk to you sometime?"  
"You can talk to me now."  
"In private."  
My face turned white as a sheet.  
"Lavender? Are you okay? Lav?"  
I looked at him. "I-I'm fine. Yeah, we'll...we'll talk later. See you."  
"Bye."  
When we went to bed, I didn't sleep at all.


	3. This is Gonna Sting a Little

**A/N (PLEASE READ!): Okay, you guys are going to probably think that I rushed into this too fast, but there's a lot more to the story than this! And I know you totally saw this coming. :P.  
P. S. Does anyone besides me find Brian Holden supermegafoxyawesomehot?**

This is Gonna Sting a Little

I'd avoided Brian for two weeks. I knew what he was going to tell me, and I didn't like it. One part of me was saying, _come on, Lav, maybe that's not what he was going to tell you_. But another part was saying, _just avoid him, just avoid him.  
_So far, I had listened to "just avoid him" part.  
Because Brian Holden was going to tell me he liked me.  
"Lavender?" It was Meredith. "Lav, Lauren and I are going to the story." It was about ten in the morning and I was lying in bed, my face buried in my pillow.  
"'Kay," I responded, my voice muffled.  
"You need anything?"  
_For Brian to stop his stupid crush on me,_ I thought, but out loud I said, "No thanks."  
"Are you sure?"  
"Yeah. I'm fine."  
"Well okay...bye." They left.  
Several minutes later there was a knock at the door. I climbed down from the top bunk and made my way to the door. I opened it, rubbing my eyes sleepily.  
"Hey, Lavender."  
"Hey, Brian." _Shit!  
_Yep, there was Brian, standing in the doorway. He was smiling, but it was a nervous smile.  
"Can I come in?"  
"Sure." _No! Lavender! What are you doing?  
_He stepped inside. "Um...did you just wake up?"  
I felt my face flush. Wait...since when do I do that around Brian? "Uh...kinda." _Hey, maybe he won't like you because of how you're dressed! _Hmm...I was wearing sweats and an old tank top. But no, Brian would never do that. Well, there's always hope, I guess.  
I closed the door behind him. "So is there something you want?" _Great, now you sound rude. Well, maybe that'll change his mind.  
_He began awkwardly. "Well...remember at dinner that one night when we all went out?"  
I nodded.  
"And I said I needed to talk to you? Alone?"  
_Act like you forgot. _I slapped my forehead. "Oh, shit! I completely forgot. What did you want to talk to me about?"  
Brian took a step closer. I resisted the urge to take a step back. Then, he took my hands in his. The he dropped them. Then he took them again.  
"Brian, just say what you need to say.  
He took a deep breath. "Okay, so, um...it's like...um...you know the movie we saw once?"  
"What movie?"  
"I don't know I was hoping you'd think of something."  
"_Brian!"  
_"Um...it's like a family of bears...no wait, that doesn't make any sense..." He paused, thinking hard."I've got it! Okay, so there are these two chipmunks and..."  
_"Chipmunks?"  
_"This is harder to tell you than it seems, okay?"  
I sigh. "Okay. But can't you just use people in your...story-thingy."  
"Oh. People. Why didn't _I _think of that."  
"Because I'm the smart one, and you're the...other one."  
He smiles. "Okay. 'Other one.' Anyway, so there are these two _people. _A boy and a girl. And their friends. But the boy likes the girl-as in, more than friends. But I don't know if the girl likes the boy." He pauses. "Lavender I...like you. I like you in _that way. _But I don't know if you like me back."  
I freeze, my brown eyes staring into his blue ones. I knew he was going to tell me this, but I didn't know what I was going to tell him back.  
As I stood there, staring into his eyes, I realized how I never really noticed the color of Brian's eyes before. They're a nice blue, and you can see laughter in them and..._Snap out of it, Lav! Say something to him!  
_"Uh-i-duh-buh-you..." _How about an actual word! _"No you don't!" _Nice going.  
_Brian looked puzzled (and he had a good reason to be). "So, you're saying I _don't _have a crush on you?"  
"Well, yes...but no! I mean, we can't...you can't...I can't...we're friends...and...you don't...we just...I feel...look, you're a great friend, but if...if we break up...and then...we might...ugh!" I put my head in my hands. There was a long pause. Finally, I responded, my voice barely hearable. "I just don't feel that way."  
"Okay," Brian responded, trying but failing to hide the hurt in his voice.  
"I'm sorry."  
"It's...it's okay. I'm fine." He paused, waiting to see if I would say anything else. When I didn't, he took a deep breath and said, "Well, I'll see you around."  
"Bye."  
And with that, he left.  
I leaned against the wall. "Oh, Lavender," I said to myself. "What did you do?"  
I sank down to the ground, hugged my knees to m chest, and began to cry.


	4. Krypto

**A/N: I'm so so so so so so so so so sorry for the delay! I was away and had no access to a computer! So I'll be trying to post as many chapters as I can over the next few days. Also, I have a new TUp ****fanfic called "Reasons Why." Of course, I'll still be continuing with this one. So, without further ado...Chapter Four:**

Krypto

Oh, Chicago. The rain never ends.  
"Lauren, go get our mail," came Meredith's voice, muffled by her pillow.  
"Why me? I got it last time it rained!"  
"Lavender, go get our mail." Nice, Mere. Real nice.  
"Why don't you get it?"  
"Be_cause, _if you haven't noticed, I'm still in my pajamas, and I'm also still in bed, but you, on the other hand, are not."  
"How do you know? You haven't even-"  
"Just get the fucking mail!"  
"Fine," I grumbled, slipping on my raincoat. Unlike most apartments, our mailboxes our located outside, sending everyone into a bad mood on a rainy day. I grabbed the key to our mailbox and proceed out of the apartment, down six flights of stairs-we have a crappy elevator, but it's always out of order-and out the door into the pouring rain.  
I really hate our apartment.  
I mean, crappy elevators, mailboxes outside the building, and a _really _creepy doorman, who is always drunk. Like when I passed him this morning.  
"Hey there, beautiful," he slurred. "Long time no see, eh? Eh?" God he's drunk.  
Anyway, our mailbox is pretty high up, so I have to stand on my tiptoes to put the key through and pull out the mail. But just as I turned the key, I heard a quiet whimper.  
I paused, listening. Figuring I was just hearing things or some squirrel or something made the noise, I continued.  
There it was again, but louder, as if it's coming closer. Which it probably is.  
I grabbed the mail and locked the box back up. As I did so, I heard the noise again, getting even louder. I turned in the direction that the whimper was coming from. There was a rustle in the bushes, and I was able to make out a silhouette of something or other, coming closer and closer and...  
"You poor thing!" were the first words to leave my mouth when I saw the poor little beagle looking up at me. The dog's hair was covered in mud, dirt ad leaves, it was incredibly skinny, and the poor little thing was shaking with fright and cold. Suddenly, it collapsed on the spot. I gently scooped it up in my arms. I needed to get this dog some help.  
I ran into the apartment, the dog in my arms, and was about to ascend up the stairs when-  
"Not so fast, missy," said a voice behind me. I turned to see Gloria, the building manager, standing behind me, her brown hair in it's usual tight bun and her face wearing it's usual smirk.  
I sighed. "Gloria, please, I need to-"  
"This apartment complex doesn't allow pets," she snaps, pointing to a sign that reads "**NO PETS ALLOWED**".  
"But I need to help-"  
"If you need to help that dog, then I suggest you find somewhere to keep it. Somewhere that is _not here. _Out!"  
"But-"  
"_Out!"  
Somewhere to keep it, somewhere to keep it, _I tried to think of a place. I suddenly had an idea. I stopped at the door and turned to the doorman-Bill, I think...ah, well. He's to drunk to care if I know his name or not.  
"Can I borrow your cell phone?" I asked him.  
"Anything for you, sweetheart," he slurred, before handing me his cell phone. Quickly, I punched in the boys' number.  
"'Ello?" came a sleepy voice that I recognized as Joe's.  
"Joe? It's Lavender. Does your apartment allow dogs?"  
"Yeah..wait, what?"  
"Thanks, bye!"  
"No, wait, Lav-!" I hung up, and then punched in our phone number.  
"Hello?"  
"Mere, it's Lav. I'm taking a slight detour and might not be back for a while. Bye." And with that I hung up.  
I looked down at the small dog in my arms. "Don't worry, little guy," I whispered softly to him. "I'll help you." The dog's eyes opened and then closed once more.  
I gave the doorman back his phone and ran out the door and hopped in my car, laying the dog across the backseat. I drove quickly to the boys' apartment building, and then ran inside, took the elevator up, ran to their apartment, and flung open the door.  
"Jesus, Lavender, don't you ever knock?" Dylan cried.  
"No. Why, does it matter?"  
"I could've been naked!"  
"Then I would've just backed out."  
"God, Lav. What do you want?"  
I held out the dog. Dylan's eyes widened.  
"Joey! Joe! Brian!' He called.  
"What?" three voices replied in unison.  
"Get over here!"  
Joey, Joe and Brian appeared in the living room. They all looked from Dylan to me. Then, their eyes came to rest on the dog.  
"Oh, shit..." began Joe. "This is not going to be fun. So this is why you asked if our apartment allowed dogs?"  
I nodded.  
"And I take it yours doesn't?"  
I nodded.  
"Would some please explain what the hell is going on?" Brian asked. Thank God. It looks like he's moved on from the uh...the...rejection.  
I started from the beginning when I went to get our mail, all the way up to coming to the apartment.  
"...so I really really really really really really really _really _need you guys to keep him!"  
Joey shrugged. "Yeah, okay."  
"Wait! What if he belongs to someone? And how should we pay for him? And _why _should we pay for him? And-" Joe was tossing question after question at me.  
"I'll pay for him, and walk him, you guys just have to keep him here and remember to feed him...that's it."  
"What if we aren't here? How will you get in?" Dylan asked.  
"I have your key."  
"Oh..wait, how do you-you know what, I'm not even going to ask," Joey said, shaking his head.  
"Well, I don't know...it's a lot of responsibility..." Joe began.  
"Dude, you sound just like my mom," I said. "I mean, what are you, _mature?"  
_He pretended be hurt. "I am not mature! I am not, I am not!"  
Dylan rolled his eyes. "Yeah, Joe. You're actually about four years old."  
I got them back on topic. "So will you keep the dog or not?"  
The boys thought about it for a while. "Do you _promise_ to pay for it?" asked Dylan.  
"Yes."  
"And walk it?"  
"Yes."  
"And all we have to do is let it live here and fill it's bowl?"  
"Yes."  
Dylan paused. "I'm in."  
"Me too," agreed Joe.  
"Same here," piped up Joey.  
We all turned to Brian. "Well...?" I asked.  
He shook his head. "No."  
"No? Why?"  
"Because."  
"Because _why_?"  
"Because I said so."  
"Now you sound like my mom, too!"  
Joe turned to me. "Sorry, Lav. We can't have it unless all of us agree."  
My brown eyes brimmed with tears. I looked at Brian. He didn't look back. Was this because I told him I didn't like him? Must be. It hurts to get rejected...  
Brian looked down at the floor. "Sorry," he whispered.  
As I turned to leave, I suddenly realized the one thing that was guaranteed to change Brian's mind.  
I spun around and looked Brian straight in the eye (which was hard to do since he still wasn't looking at me.)  
"Oh, and just so you know, I was _going _to name him Krypto."  
And that's how Krypto the beagle joined Team StarKid.

**A/N: So I realize now that I made the doorman guy a bit of a Haymitch Abernathy...ah, well. A Anyway, I'm just bursting with ideas so the next few chapters will be along _very _soon as I said above. Less than three you all!  
-Willow**


End file.
